Post Pictures of your Transformers, Let's see 40 years worth of Transformers!

[lastmaximal]

Eh, I'm sure they can do a solid new take that doesn't need to hew too closely to it. The T30 effort was decent and could do with some refining, and they've put out some good looking bruiser builds since. Maybe it could even work using the Gamer Edition/Fractured Friendship Optimus engineering as a basis.

 

[Agent X]

Alpha Q!

And U!

And U!

And uuuuuuu

On the subject of Alpha Quintesson, what is/was the deal with the hexangular holes on the sides of his torso?

 

[CoffeeHorse]

Bandai owns those IP now. It's not likely.

If Hasbro can get along with their former mortal enemy Mattel, they can get along with Bandai.

 

[Superomegaprime]

On the subject of Alpha Quintesson, what is/was the deal with the hexangular holes on the sides of his torso?

Feeding tube, access point, when he cannot make up his mind which face is in charge that day when it comes to meal time, maybe?

 

[Sabrblade]

If Hasbro can get along with their former mortal enemy Mattel, they can get along with Bandai.

The real question isn't about Hasbro, but rather if Takara and Bandai can play nice.

 

[unluckiness]

If Hasbro can get along with their former mortal enemy Mattel, they can get along with Bandai.

It’s just a price tag but one I doubt Takara is willing to pay for an update of a character who effectively doesn’t exist in their fiction, in a toyline where they’re allowed to take design liberties. If nobody cares about Dorvack, even less people would care about the specifics of Roadbuster’s altmode.

All they have to do is a bigger, flatter version of Stege Hound.

 

[Princess Viola]

Does Bandai actually own the Dorvack IP though?

Like they obviously own the molds for the original toys since the toyline was by Takatoku but do they actually own the IP itself?

(Not like anyone cares either way, it's a dead franchise from the 1980s)

 

[LordGigaIce]

The real question isn't about Hasbro, but rather if Takara and Bandai can play nice.

Bandai owns the Brave IP these days and TT is doing Brave stuff again for the first time in like twenty years so I'd say they can.

Does Bandai actually own the Dorvack IP though?

Like they obviously own the molds for the original toys since the toyline was by Takatoku but do they actually own the IP itself?

(Not like anyone cares either way, it's a dead franchise from the 1980s)

According to wikipedia (I know) the tv show was conceived as a means to promote Takatoku's toys. So either it was owned by Takatoku (and thus Bandai today), Fuji TV, or Ashi Productions.

My guess is no one's bothered to sort out who owns what because it's a franchise no one really cares about and the most iconic mecha from it are most prominently known in a TT/Hasbro franchise so what would the point even be?

 

[Princess Viola]

Yeah I feel asking if 'Can Takara and Bandai play nice' is kind of weird considering that whole 'Bandai x Takara Tomy' thing from a couple years ago where Bandai did a Zoids Chogokin and Takara did a Tomica Gundam thing.

Like they clearly can work together and collab on jive (or at the very least give the other company a license to produce product using one of their own IP)

 

[unluckiness]

Like I said, it’s all a question of $$$.
I don’t think Roadbuster is worth the money or hassle though.

 

[LordGigaIce]

ANIME SWORD FIGHT

G1 Optimus wants to get in on the "Knight Optimus" trend from TLK and RiD '15

 

[Haywire]

According to wikipedia (I know) the tv show was conceived as a means to promote Takatoku's toys. So either it was owned by Takatoku (and thus Bandai today), Fuji TV, or Ashi Productions.

My guess is no one's bothered to sort out who owns what because it's a franchise no one really cares about and the most iconic mecha from it are most prominently known in a TT/Hasbro franchise so what would the point even be?

Presumably, someone must have sorted out rights somehow, since Discotek released the whole series in their SD on BD line. Assuming they actually licensed it, I'll have to go check the case and see what it says...

 

[Superomegaprime]

ANIME SWORD FIGHT

Now, who going to fall down first before the real victor emerges?

 

[Sabrblade]

Like I said, it’s all a question of $$$.
I don’t think Roadbuster is worth the money or hassle though.

To be fair, was Roadbuster even worth the money and hassle back when we got his Thrilling 30 toy in 2014?

Presumably, someone must have sorted out rights somehow, since Discotek released the whole series in their SD on BD line. Assuming they actually licensed it, I'll have to go check the case and see what it says...

I can't imagine them having not licensed it. Otherwise, Discotek would have released it illegally.

 

[Princess Viola]

I wasn't aware that T30 Roadbuster was licensed from Bandai (or whoever the hug owns the Dorvack rights), which is literally what we're talking about right now.

I think.

 

[CoffeeHorse]

Like I said, it’s all a question of $$$.
I don’t think Roadbuster is worth the money or hassle though.

He's worth it to me.

 

[LordGigaIce]

So according to TF Wiki the Dorvack moulds that became Whirl and Roadbuster have Ashi Productions copyrights stamped into them and the company's AP logo was included on the Transformers G1 packaging from Hasbro for those toys.

So it seems that the Dorvack IP- including the character designs and moulds- are the property of Ashi Productions which still exists as a private employee owned animation studio in Japan.
It may be the case where Bandai owns the physical moulds but can't reissue them as Dorvack characters without a licence from AP.

anyhow

I don't think any of this is relevant to a potential new Roadbuster toy. As Princess Viola implied, the T30 toy didn't licence anything from Bandai, AP, or anyone else involved in Dorvack.
Roadbuster is the kind of character where as long as his vehicle mode is some kind of chunky green and orange military vehicle you're good, and that's what they did with T30, staying clear of looking like the original while still feeling like an update of the original.

So as long as they go that general route again... I don't think they have to worry about licensing anything from anyone.

 

[Dake]

Oh and I missed it: are we not liking T30 Roadbuster now?

 

[Sciflyer]

I have always thought that the T30 Roadbuster toy was just okay. I appreciate the integration of modular weapons, and his transformation is easy and fun. However, I felt (and still do) that the arms were spindly and overly long, and everything south of his knees should be a page one rewrite. His alt mode is okay. A decent enough update, but not really the flat, broad, Jeep/Toyota/Humvee/whatever design cues that I associate with him.

For me, the Roadbuster situation is a bit like T30 Jetfire. At the time, T30/LG Jetfire felt like a decent enough place holder for an updated toy. However, the Siege Commander hit all of the notes that I wanted in a true, modern update. I just want a similar update for Roadbuster. Not saying he needs to be a Commander, but I feel like the current team would be capable of cranking out a nice version that homages the original.

TL;DR: It's not a bad toy; it's pretty fun to fiddle with. It just doesn't particularly scratch my itch for a true update to the original toy, which is what I would prefer.

 

[Gizmoboy]

This is who I use as my RoadBuster.